1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a vehicle system pulley misalignment gage and, more particularly, to an alternator pulley misalignment gage that is magnetically secured to a crank shaft pulley of a vehicle, and includes a measuring device positioned relative to the alternator pulley so as to measure inboard and outboard alignment of the alternator pulley relative to the crank shaft pulley.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
As is well understood in the art, internal combustion engines used for driving vehicles include a crank shaft that imparts rotational movement to certain vehicle systems to provide the power necessary to operate the systems. The crank shaft is connected to a plurality of piston shafts having associated piston heads positioned within piston cylinders. A series of valves in communication with the piston cylinders allow fuel to be introduced into the cylinders to be combusted so as to drive the pistons in the cylinders, and allow exhaust to be removed from the cylinders after combustion. The crank shaft is rotated as a result of the reciprocal motion of the pistons within the cylinders from this process.
A crank shaft pulley is secured to a crank shaft flange at the front end of the crank shaft. The crank shaft pulley includes a series of parallel grooves that are appropriately configured to allow a series of drive belts to be rotatably secured to the crank shaft pulley. The drive belts are also rotatably secured to other pulleys associated with the engine, such as an alternator pulley, a power steering pulley, and an air conditioning (AC) compressor pulley that provides the driving force necessary to operate the alternator, power steering system and AC compressor. Therefore, rotation of the crank shaft causes energy to be transferred to these other vehicle systems.
A problem exists in the above-described configuration with respect to the alignment between the crank shaft pulley and the alternator pulley. Because the alternator is secured to the engine block by various types of brackets, the exact position of the alternator varies from vehicle to vehicle because of the acceptable flexibility in the machined tolerances of the brackets. In other words, different brackets may position the alternator at different locations relative to other engine components. Because the alternator pulley is secured to the alternator, alignment between the crank shaft pulley and the alternator pulley may also vary within the range of the acceptable tolerances. Consequently, the plane that the alternator pulley drive belt rotates in may be slightly skewed for some vehicles.
Misalignment between the alternator pulley and the crank shaft pulley has lead to a significant number of consumer complaints. If the alternator pulley is misaligned from the crank shaft pulley more than a certain amount, rotation of the alternator pulley drive belt may result in belt squeals and chirps, especially after a certain amount of wear has occurred on the drive belt. The belt squeals and chirps are a result of grooves and ribs in the drive belt that may bind in the alternator pulley at high revolutions. In order to correct this situation, the automobile manufacturer must either realign the alternator so that the alternator pulley is better aligned with the crank shaft pulley, or provide new belts to eliminate the squeals and chirps. If new belts are provided, the belt chirps may reappear after the new belts have been worn, thus requiring new belts again. As a result of this, the automobile manufacturer may incur significant cost after the vehicle has been sold due to correction of the belt chirps.
What is needed is an alternator pulley alignment tool that allows the automobile manufacturer to assess and correct alternator pulley misalignment at the manufacturing level of the vehicle to prevent correction costs later in the life of the vehicle. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide such an alignment tool.